Home
/
Non-Fiction
/
Things I Don't Want to Know
Things I Don't Want to Know
Oct 8, 2024 4:22 PM

Author:Deborah Levy,Juliet Stevenson

Things I Don't Want to Know

Penguin presents the audiobook edition of Things I Don't Want to Know by Deborah Levy, read by Juliet Stevenson.

Things I Don't Want to Know is the first in Deborah Levy's essential three-part 'Living Autobiography' on writing and womanhood.

Taking George Orwell's famous essay, 'Why I Write', as a jumping-off point, Deborah Levy offers her own indispensable reflections of the writing life. With wit, clarity and calm brilliance, she considers how the writer must stake claim to that contested territory as a young woman and shape it to her need. Things I Don't Want to Know is a work of dazzling insight and deep psychological succour, from one of our most vital contemporary writers.

'Unmissable. Like chancing upon an oasis, you want to drink it slowly... Subtle, unpredictable, surprising' Guardian

'Superb sharpness and originality of imagination. An inspiring work of writing' Marina Warner

Reviews

An up-to-date version of 'A Room of One's Own' . . . I suspect it will be quoted for many years to come

—— Irish Examiner

Superb sharpness and originality of imagination. It is feminist and political while being an inspiring work of writing . . . She writes on the high wire, unfalteringly

—— Marina Warner

Levy's strength is her originality of thought and expression

—— Jeanette Winterson

An exciting writer, sharp and shocking as the knives her characters wield

—— Sunday Times

One of the few contemporary British writers comfortable on a world stage

—— New Statesman

A writer whose anger and confusion in the face of the world transform into poetic flights of fancy . . . which always feel marvellously right

—— Independent

A cordial, confiding narrator.

—— Sarah Crown , Guardian

Remarkably readable wit and flair.

—— Helen Brown , Daily Telegraph

An original and wonderful book.

—— Allison Pearson , The Sunday Telegraph

A witty, life-affirming book.

—— Valerie Grove , The Oldie

This spirited memoir of her journey into remission weaves together stories of her unconventional, orphan childhood with poignant reflections on motherhood, art, and literature.

—— Lorna Bradbury , World of Cruising

Genevieve Fox writes about cancer without cliché. Hers is a feat of endurance, not a journey.

—— Harriet Baker , The Times Literary Supplement

Such vivid detail…. Engaging

—— Natasha Cooper , Literary Review

This fiercely intelligent memoir is a fascinating and compassionate view of another world and the author’s struggle to both escape from and understand it as she heads out into the world

—— The Pool, Ones to Watch in 2018

A shocking and powerfully moving memoir

—— Daily Express

What comes through is Tara’s grit, determination and instinctive sense that somewhere within education lies her redemption ... There is pain and adversity in this heart-wrenching memoir but ultimately what Tara leaves us with is hope

—— Sunday Express

Marvellous. There is no feeling like discovering a young writer who is springing up fully armed with so much talent

—— Stephen Fry

Absolutely superb . . . the last 100 pages were so gripping I could hardly breathe

—— Sophie Hannah

Tara Westover's beautifully written memoir shines a light on a part of our country that we too often overlook. Her powerful tale—of trying to find a place for herself in the world, without losing her connection to her family or her beloved home—deserves to be widely read. My Mamaw would have been rooting for Tara.

—— J.D. Vance, author of Hillbilly Elegy

Educated, in showing us the unstoppable power of a young woman determined to make her own decisions and find her own way, is an inspiring and important tale for our times. I am still cheering her on

—— Rebecca Stott, award winning author of THE DAYS OF RAIN

Unflinching and fascinating

—— Sarah Manning , Red

Tragic and uplifting in equal measure

—— Irish Tatler

An extraordinary story, beautifully told.

—— Louise O'Neill

Extraordinary, heartbreaking and ultimately uplifting

—— Carys Bray, author of A Song for Issy Bradley

This ferociously intelligent memoir is nevertheless full of kindness and insight. In looking beyond the triumphant point where many memoirs would finish, it achieves something far more powerful: Westover demonstrates that leaving a family is not the work of a moment but of a lifetime. Unflinching in confronting the cost of self-preservation, this book is beautiful in its bravery.

—— Imogen Hermes Gowar, author of THE MERMAID AND MRS HANCOCK

A book that I did splits over

—— Mandy Patinkin

Jaw-dropping and so inspiring, everyone should read this book.

—— Stylist

A striking story, beautifully told. Tara is an incredible new talent

—— Cathy Rentzenbrink, author of A Manual for Heartache

A punch to the gut, a slow burn, a savage indictment, a love letter: Educated somehow contrives to be all these things at once. Tara Westover guides us through the extraordinary Western landscape of her coming of age, and in clear, tender prose makes us feel what she felt. We give ourselves over to her telling, even when she takes us to the very darkest places a family can dwell. Rarely have I read a book that made me so uncomfortable, so enraged, and at the same time so utterly, entirely absorbed. I loved this book, and this woman.

—— Claire Dederer

This remarkable memoir – one of the best I've ever read – is my kind of miracle. The book made me cringe, cry out, cover my eyes, shake with anger, beam with pride, and appreciate the trials that led to my own education. Tara's story will find a place alongside modern classic memoirs, like Wild and The Glass Castle. It's that special

—— Susannah Cahalan, author of Brain on Fire

Breathtaking, heart-wrenching, inspirational – I’ve never read anything like this. Educated tells the story of a young girl's escape from violence and emotional prison. It is about the love of family and the pain of family both, the ferocity of the human spirit, and the power of education to change lives. Educated is one of the best books, and Westover one of the most gifted writers, that I've read in a very long time

—— Amy Chua, author of Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother

Powerful, moving, brave, naked and completely at home in its form . . . This is a daughter’s story of how she grew into herself and comes to understand her home.

—— Mona Simpson, author of Casebook and Anywhere But Here

An incredible memoir of triumph over seemingly endless adversity. The author's ability to write about her experiences in a clear-eyed, nonjudgmental way makes her story a pleasure to read. A study in the power and wonder of resilience

—— Cea Sunrise Person

Educated is a wise and deep reflection about surviving one’s family. I bow down to Tara Westover, not only for her marvelous, sentence-by-sentence craftsmanship but also for making sense and meaning from a confounding and hair-raising childhood. This is memoir at its best

—— Kelly Corrigan

Educated is so powerful, so haunting . . . [Westover’s] finely measured, beautifully rhythmic prose conveys the pain of trying to reconcile herself with being estranged from her parents, no matter how delusional they might be. Rejecting any form of binary thinking, she writes with a humaneness that comes partly from having suffered, and the book that grew out of that suffering is a rare and unexpected gift

—— The Irish Independent

Tara Westover’s exhilarating coming of age story has only just come out and it’s already a classic … it leaves us readers dazzled and humbled in equal measure

—— Culture Whisper, Best New Memoirs of 2018

An extraordinary tale

—— Red Magazine

Totally unputdownable

—— Marissa Carter , Irish Independent

Remarkable

—— Woman & Home

A wonderful read

—— Church Times

A beautifully written, lyrical memoir packed full of incident and well worth a read

—— The Learning Spy

A beautifully written account…fit to stand alongside the great modern memoirs.

—— Sunday Times

It’s amazing. Couldn’t recommend it enough

—— Claudia Winkleman , Stellar Magazine

A brilliant memoir

—— Lily Cole , The Times

Amazing and brilliant.

—— i Paper , Nina Stibbe

Vivid evocation of a truly terrifying childhood

—— New Statesman

Unflinching and fascinating. Educated was one of 2018's standout memoirs.

—— Red

It's extraordinary and shines a light on the Mormon way of life ... fascinating.

—— Rick Edwards , The Sun

A powerful, jaw dropper of a book

—— Stylist

Triumphing over your background like spring triumphs over winter is always fertile territory for memoir. Perhaps the most exciting recently is Tara Westover’s Educated; she had a home life that is frankly astonishing, and how she ends up doing a master’s at Cambridge will make your heart soar.’

—— Jenny Colgan , Guardian

Jaw-dropping and so inspiring, everyone should read this book

—— Stylist

Tara's journey as she realises her burning desire to know more about the world and escape the influence of her domineering father and brother is a true inspiration.

—— Hello!

Absolutely incredible.

—— Ariel Nicholson

An amazing story

—— The Times, 20 Best Memoirs

If you didn't read this memoir when it first came out, do so, and realise what the fuss was all about

—— Velvet Magazine

It was one of the most interesting books I've ever read[...] I came away a lot more enlightened and educated myself.

—— Marie Claire

This is a fascinating, breathtaking memoir that you won't be able to put down.

—— Good Housekeeping

A really remarkable story

—— VIP Magazine

Breathtaking

—— Stylist

Educated is devastatingly entertaining. Morbidly fascinating. Educated is, without doubt, an essential read.

—— British Journal of General Practice

I found myself forcing onto other people just so I could talk to them about it.

—— Vogue

It's brilliant.

—— Donna Air , Sunday Telegraph

In her beautifully written memoir, Westover explores her complex childhood and her heart-breaking decision to leave her family and pursue an education. It is proof of the transformative power of learning and the importance of second chances

—— Harper's Bazaar

I devoured this book. I loved it . . . It's such a good book

—— Sara Jones

It's amazing

—— Alex Jones

Educated is a shocking story of self-invention and the transformative power of hope, tenacity and education.

—— Elle, Best Audiobooks

On audio, I find myself enthralled and convinced.

—— Nigella Lawson , The Times

A truly inspiring listen.

—— Good Housekeeping
Comments
Welcome to zzdbook comments! Please keep conversations courteous and on-topic. To fosterproductive and respectful conversations, you may see comments from our Community Managers.
Sign up to post
Sort by
Show More Comments
Copyright 2023-2024 - www.zzdbook.com All Rights Reserved